Ready to Learn Media Center

Hello Lucy Readers,

Make sure you come by and enjoy the PBS learning media center visiting our library.  Carmen Alvarez, our Early Childhood Project Specialist, was able to bring the center to our district EC libraries after attending a Ready to Learn seminar this year.  The center includes an iPad loaded with PBS educational apps, a Kindle tablet, and two iTouches.  The seminar emphasized "Leveraging Literacy & Math Resources for Community Impact." It's really cool!

Let it snow! Let it snow!

It's almost time for our winter break and we'll be getting in the spirit with a viewing of The Snowman!

In its original book version, Raymond Briggs tells a beautiful story of a boy and his snowman entirely without text.  The story is full of magic, wonder, and imagination.  It also has a healthy presentation of sadness and disappointment.  The movie tweaks the story a bit, but tries very hard to preserve the beauty and power of the illustrations. The result is a bit more playful, but just as effective.

There are a ton of enrichment activities for the story at The Preschool Toolbox Blog, some more rigorous than others. They look like a lot of fun, but my favorite thing to do with this book is to just show the children the illustrations and let them build the story.

So Thankful!

I am so thankful for children's books.  I'm thankful for libraries and common spaces where people might sit together and enjoy sharing information in any of its forms.  
I hope everyone has the opportunity to read a good book over the Thanksgiving Break.  

See you next week!

Turkey Time!

     Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and we'll get in the spirit with Wendy Silvano's Turkey Trouble. The turkey in this story will do anything to avoid being the holiday meal, and kids will really enjoy his problem solving attempts.  It's a funny story, but the main character invites sympathy with a dilemma that students can really understand.  Silvano's writing is accessible to a large age base, but the nice balance of dialogue and predictability make it a great read for the Pre-K bunch. Students will find the surprise ending both comforting and funny. 

Check out a fun enrichment activity for the story at the Dresses n' Messes blog.

Fall Fun!

At your next visit we'll be reading The Busy Little Squirrel by Nancy Tafuri. 
This story is wonderful on so many levels!  It has a wonderful refrain that children will enjoy repeating, and plenty of autumn vocabulary.  Animals try to "talk" Squirrel into their favorite activity, but she is just too busy getting reading for fall. The animal sounds that accompany their speech are fun and sometimes unpredictable. Tafuri's images are bright and simple, with just the right amount of detail to make it realistic. 
This story lends itself well to many activities.  One of my favorite activity ideas is a Fall Sensory Tub filled with items from the story.  I found that idea at: http://delightfullearning.blogspot.com/2010/10/busy-little-squirrel.html

Week 37:  SUMMER FUN
Hello penguins!

This will be the last library day for students! 

Week 36:  We love you, Mom!
We'll read Before You Were Here, Mi Amor by Samantha R. Vamos and talk a bit about mother figures in our lives.

This will be our last week for student check-outs!

Week 31: Welcome Liz Garton Scanlon

Hello Lucy Readers,
It's wonderful to have award winning author Liz Garton Scanlon at our school!!

Week 30: Preview Author's Visit

Hello Lucy Readers!
We'll be talking about our upcoming author's visit by Liz Garton Scanlon, and reading her award winning book All the World.  We'll also check out her website at http://www.lizgartonscanlon.com/.  

Week 29: How Do Plants Grow?

Welcome Back Lucy Readers!
We'll be reading Sunflowers by Gwendolyn Zepeda and singing a planting song.

Happy Spring Break!!

Week: 28 Field Trip Week

What fun awaits our students at The Austin Nature Center!  If your class can make it to the library, we can read whatever book tickles our fancy and have some extra time to browse and read. 

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

We'll talk about Dr. Seuss' March 2nd birthday, and we'll read a couple of books.

Week 25: Using My Imagination

Hello Lucy Read Penguins,
Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson  is a classic story about a boy, a crayon, and a great big imagination.  We'll read the story and put crayon to paper ourselves!

Week 24: Wading around in a website

Hello Lucy Readers,

We'll be checking out the RIF Leading to Reading website.  It has e-books, songs, games, and more.  And the best part is that it is completely bilingual!
www.rif.org/kids/leadingtoreading/en/preschoolers.htm

Week 23: Things That Move

Hello Penguins!

This week we will be reading I Wish I Were a Pilot for the ESL classes, and Oso en Bicicleta for the dual language classes.  Both stories are by Stella Blackstone and show wonderful examples of transportation vehicles.

We'll be classify the different transportation vehicles as travel by air, land, or water.
See you then!

Week 22: People We Meet

Hello Lucy Readers!
This week we'll meet the people in Quinito's Neighborhood  by Ina Cumpiano, and talk about the work they do in their community.  We'll be making those text-to-world connections, and discuss the people that live and work in our own neighborhood.

Week 21: Places We Go

Hello Lucy Readers!
We'll be going places with Stella Blackstone's Bear About Town!

 See you there!

Week 20: Check it out!

Hello Penguins!
Don't forget to bring your badges to your library visit, they serve as library cards.  We will read a story and let students learn the check-out process.
Hope everyone is having a great week.